“We welcome the decision to relieve the DG for education Bobby Soobrayan of his duty as the chief accounting officer for basic education in the country,” Sadtu general secretary Mugwena Maluleke said in a statement.

“We believe that this will go a long way to stabilise education and create the needed labour peace in our sector,” said Maluleke.

Education department spokesman Elijah Mhlanga on Monday said Soobrayan had been moved to “other responsibilities in government”.

Panyaza Lesufi was appointed acting DG until the end of April.

“Soobrayan leaves the sector that is fairly stable and has already started to implement the goals of the National Development Plan,” he said.

Soobrayan had been accused of signing an agreement on behalf of the department without a proper mandate, and misusing funds from the Education Labour Relations Council during April 2012.

Mhlanga said reports from the Public Service Commission and Judge Willem van der Merwe had cleared him of wrongdoing.

Lesufi previously served as a special adviser to Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga.